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Campaigners call for online fraud to become a specific crime

A hit podcast and Netflix documentary about real-life catfish fishing has sparked a new debate about internet safety law.

Podcast Her Series Sweet Her Bobby tells how a thirty-something London woman is tricked into pretending to be her boyfriend. revealed how she started her 10-year online relationship. The Tinder Swindler tells how a group of women were scammed out of hundreds of thousands of dollars via a dating app.

The success of the show ensured that "staying safe online continues to be a very hot and needed topic," Metrosaid. She is tricked into falling in love with "Bobby", telling The Times that law reform is also needed to "act as a deterrent" for catfish scammers. said.

What is catfish fishing?

Catfish fishing "sounds like an exciting hobby, but language can mask the insidious nature of abuse," says an award-winning trial attorney at Goldsmith Chambers. One Charlotte Proudman wrote in  articleThe Guardian"Perpetrators can deceive and manipulate victims, impersonate others and prey on victims' vulnerabilities, and develop emotional dependence." It creates a relationship, and if you're tricked into a romantic relationship, you get something out of it: money or emotional distress."

The term "catfishing" was coined in the 2010 documentary believed to be derived from the catfish. This is about a budding online relationship that took an unexpected turn. 

Those engaged in catfish fishing steal photos, videos and personal information and create fake profiles and websites to target Cheating – and such scams seem to be becoming more and more common.

Last year BetMinded targeted more than 2,000 UK adults A survey conducted in 2018 revealed that 20% of respondents had been hit by a catfish, and that “38% of 25- to 34-year-olds fell.”, Reported by North Wales Live .

Remy Le Fevre, head of global communications at dating app Badoo, told Metro: Similar to creating a dating profile, "the modern approach is that catfish have to spread the truth, find ways to match their personality to their likes and dislikes, and be open-minded about height, age, work, etc."

"These misrepresentations use technology to 'prove' non-authentic versions, such as by editing images." ', he added.

How Targets Find Potential Catfish. If you keep trying and failing, you should sound the alarm.” 

This includes asking for "photos and videos," the paper said. Catfish has also "been AWOL without any explanation", "extremely strong", and "getting sly about providing his profile on various social media."

Age UK advises caution if "I searched the internet for a name and it doesn't seem to exist" or "the picture doesn't match the picture". I'm here. In their dating profiles". Also beware if "their stories may contradict each other or may not match up perfectly."

What are the laws regarding catfish fishing?

Catfish fishing "is not a crime per se," reported The Times. A 2014 study review of social media and the law concluded that the law is in place to prosecute crimes committed via social media. rice field.

Internet law expert Cohen Davis attorney explained that, except for harassment, "there is no criminal law against social media impersonation." did.

However, while "fake online profiles on social media may not themselves be illegal," the law firm noted that "there are catfishing and other activities involved in fake online accounts." , which may turn an otherwise legal activity into an illegal one."Illegal". 

When to cross the normal.

Catfish fishing " may be illegal" if the scammer obtains the money or goods "by deception," said Cohen Davis.

And if "romance fraud leads to sexual contact," Catfish could be charged with "many crimes related to non-consensual sex." According to the company, it is invalid.

Also, if the victim surrenders personal information, "they may file a privacy violation claim against the fraudster in civil court."

In planned changes to the Online Safety Bill, the government said social media sites and search engines should also "root out scammers and scammers on their platforms"

The proposal, which was announced earlier this year, requires search engines and platforms that host user-generated content, video sharing, or live streaming to "take precautions to protect users of their services from fraud by other users." “Obligations” will be imposed, the government said. "This includes 'catfishing' romance scams." 

Why is catfishing so talked about?

His podcast Sweet Bobby, a hit produced by Tortoise Media, played a key role in bringing the problem of catfish fishing to the public eye, exploiting online deception sparked a campaign. Specific crime.

This campaign is led by Kirat Assi. Kirat Assi was drawn into an online relationship with a cardiologist named Bobby through Facebook, The Times said.

However, "it was not the real Bobby who was communicating with her, but her young female cousin called Simran Bogal, who was using a fake profile," the paper continued. . "This relationship began as a friendship, turned romantic, and lasted through Assi's 30s." Over the course of

a decade, Bogal created a cast of 50 powerful fake online personas. , weaving in countless lies and fantastical stories, at one point Bobby died and then came back to life, becoming a witness. - Protection program.

He apparently tried to make her believe that her "purpose was not to extract money from Assi, but to be in a genuine romantic relationship with her," Proudman wrote in The Guardian. increase. Assi explained that she was "controlled as Bobby monitored her movements and dictated her daily life choices," and that the relationship "had a huge impact on her mental and physical health."

Proudman said: "If this was a simple case of a real relationship between the two of hers, it must have been shouting coercive dominance. This was a crime." Crime since 2015”. Instead, Assi settled a civil lawsuit against Bhogal for harassment, misuse of personal information, and data protection breaches.

But "it should not have been left to the abuse victim to pursue the perpetrator in civil court," Proudman argued.

Assi told The Times that law reform was needed. To be a catfish, "know that it's a crime as soon as you get caught, just like driving with a cell phone.

"It will be an imminent deterrent. A lot of people still do, but some people think, 'I'm just not taking risks,'" she said.